Of course, there is
always a surprise or two that can run up the bill. One of Palmer Johnson's
recently completed projects was more of a yacht completion than a refit,
but the same rules apply, and the story of the vessel offers a lesson
in the unexpected. In the spring of 2001, a 102-foot carbon-fiber motoryacht
arrived via barge with most of her composite work finished, engines
secured to beds, and a partially finished interior. Robinson says that
after a survey and talks with the owner, everyone believed the boat
to be almost "complete." Even with this encouraging report,
Palmer Johnson estimated that she still needed about 30,000 man-hours
to get to launch day.

As it turned out,
the work actually took around three times that. Why? When the planned
work began, the yard discovered that the engine beds had been poorly
constructed and misaligned from the get-go. This required Palmer Johnson's
crew to remove the engines through the cabin sole, reconstruct the engine
beds, and repair what was found to be poor deck coring. Robinson says
that some other systems were not installed properly, and when all was
said and done, it took 16 months of full-time staff, including joiners,
electricians, mechanics, painters, and carpenters, to complete the work.
Naturally, this was reflected in the bill.

There will always be
a certain amount of "discovery" during a refit project, says
Lynn Morris, service manager for Rybovich Spencer. However, he adds that
with proper planning on the part of the owner, many project hurdles can
be avoided. "If the refit is going to include structural changes,
the owner should employ the services of a naval architect," he recommends,
noting that a thorough survey is also required. The naval architect helps
develop a concrete plan of what work will be done. A well-developed, written
plan also makes it possible to get more realistic bids from the refit
yards you are considering having perform the work. Morris suggests getting
bids from at least three or four yards because price variation can be
significant. In fact, bids can vary as much $200,000 as a result of different
interpretations of the owner's wants and needs, says Morris. He
also cautions that excessive change orders from owners, which can result
in a never-ending project scenario, will put the refit plan in flux. "And
the longer the yacht is in the yard, the higher the cost," Morris
adds.